Opening the doors to a new business and becoming a nursing entrepreneur is not an easy path to follow. An entrepreneur must have a business attitude and the drive to succeed while also finding a niche that attracts customers. Having a few ideas and tips in mind about how to create a new business will make it easier to build a company.

Identify a Problem

An entrepreneur is a businessman or woman who strives to solve a particular problem by making a new company. Creatively solving the problem to make a new product or service is the key to starting a new company.

Anyone who is planning to start a business that relates to nursing should begin the process by determining a problem that it is possible to solve. Start the process by writing down a wide range of potential problems in nursing. For example, if a problem in the area is an inability to get patients to the hospital, then it should go onto the list.

Problems can range from patients who cannot get to doctor appointments to technical issues and even small issues like organization of medical documents. Identifying a few areas that need improvement in the medical field will make it easier to find a business idea that works for the individual.

Brainstorm Solutions

Solutions to the problems that doctors, hospitals or other medical facilities face is the basis of any medically related business. As a nurse, the best way to create a business that relates to education, training and experience is by brainstorming potential solutions.

Solutions are variable based on the particular problem the area faces. For example, an area that has problems getting patients to arrive for appointments on time might start a transportation business or a company that sends a nurse to the patient’s home instead. By working around the problem and then creating a list of a few potential solutions, it is possible to find a business that will work for personal abilities and interests.

The solutions are only the first step in creating the business, but it is the first step in solving the particular problem at hand. Solutions to the problems should always focus on the needs of the patients, the hospital or clinic, the nurses involved and the abilities of everyone starting the new company.

Read the rest of this entry »

Bronson Chang, a native of Hawaii and 2010 graduate of USC, wanted to go back home and grow his uncle’s business. The business, called Uncle Clay’s House of Pure Aloha is an icon in the local community and is known for incredible homemade, all natural Hawaiin treats. Mr. Chang felt that he could take his Uncle Clay’s shop to the next level by opening more stores and introduce new products. There was only one small problem — despite the store’s popularity, neither he nor his uncle had the capital to grow the business. Instead of turning to traditional sources of funding like banks or venture capital, Mr. Chang used a relatively new approach to raising money called crowdfunding to raise the $54K he needed to expand the Uncle Clay’s House of Pure Aloha.

Crowdfunding uses the wisdom of crowds to help entrepreneurs, artists, writers, and non-profits raise money by allowing people to donate funds to support a project or business. It allows those who are seeking money, and those who have money to invest, the ability to take their cause to the community and share the risks among many. Additionally, it solves the problem of too few venture capitalist and too many entrepreneurs.

The process is relatively simple for both the entrepreneur and the investor.

The entrepreneur has a good idea. They present it online. Investors read about it and fund it. In most cases, because the selling of equity carries with it potentially strict regulations, the companies actually don’t give up any equity or incur additional debt. Instead, the entrepreneurs give out rewards for the money invested (investments are really not necessarily investments where there is implied return — but a donation).

The success of companies like Diaspora, a new open social networking site that plans to compete against Facebook, and the Million Pixel Project, where anyone could buy pixels on a website for $1 per pixel, are driving more and more entrepreneurs and creative types to rely on crowdfunding to raise money.

Here is a review of six sites that an entrepreneur may consider if crowdfunding seems like an option:

1. Startup Addict: a way for people to pool small amounts of money to back a good idea or project. Free registration for exchange of a 5% commission on successfully funded projects. It is a threshold based funding project where the investor receives the money only if the threshold funding level is met. If not, the money is returned to the pledgers. There is no exchange for profits, but instead, a reward from the founder (the founder can decide what she gives as a reward based on their own critieria). The founder typically has up to 90 days to reach funding for the project. Starupaddict allows for all kinds of startups to raise money, including non profits. Unlike many other crowdfunding sites, it is not just geared to the creative types.

Read the rest of this entry »

What’s your favourite episode of Doctor Who and why?

Via: CableTV.com

Read the rest of this entry »

History of MSG – By Jeffrey Murrah

For thousands of years, people in Japan used seaweed to enhance the flavours of their foods. Scientists began wondering what was it in seaweed that enhanced the food. Eventually, Kikunae Ikeda discovered what it was. His discovery was soon manufactured on a large scale. In 1908 the industrial giant Ajinomoto began manufacturing the chemical compound known as free glutamic acid, otherwise known as “MSG”. The substance was patented in 1909 by a company in Japan. During the second world war, American soldiers noticed that Japanese army rations were tasty. Army quartermasters discovered that the reason for this was MSG.

Subsequent to this discovery, use of the substance spread to the United States. Use of MSG in food became widespread in the United States in the 1950’s through restaurants and home use. The main product used in spreading this influence was labeled as Accent. The product was pure MSG. When the standards for food additives took effect in 1958, the additive MSG was ‘grandfathered” in without any testing since its use was so widespread. Technically it is classified by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) as “generally regarded as safe” without any testing of the substance.

The manufacturing process used to produce the compound requires sophisticated refining. Strong acids and high temperatures are used hydrolyzing, or breaking down various proteins. The refining or ‘hydrolizing’ leaves the manufacturere with a mixture of D-glutamic acid, pyroglutamic acid, along with large amounts of the sodium salt of L-glutamic acid, and various other amino acids. Although the body contains some of these proteins in the brain, these artificially produced substances are dangerous. Since they are produced under artificial methods, their effects differ from naturally produced proteins. The refining of a substance increases its potency. This is true of cocaine, sugar and other highly refined substances.

The companies involved in the manufacture of MSG have formed a coalition known as the Glutamate Association in 1977. Although membership in the organization is secretive, some observers believe that membership includes Ajinomoto, Archer Daniels Midland, Campbell, Corn Products Corporation, McCormick & Company, Pet Foods, Pfizer laboratories, and Takeda. The Glutamate Association conducts research and makes public statements regarding the use and ’safety’ of MSG and associated products.

The spread of MSG use remains wide with heavy use by fast food restaurants. For example at KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken) all non-desert items on its menu contain this substance.

Read the rest of this entry »

Author: Christiana Augustine

Facts About the Origin of Christmas and History of Some Christmas Traditions

In the early years of Christianity the main holiday was Easter. In the 4th Century church officials decided to have the birth of Jesus celebrated as a holiday and Pope Julius I chose the date of December 25 for Christmas. The holiday, initially called the Feast of the Nativity, spread to England by the end of the 6th Century and to Scandinavia by the end of the 8th Century.

Church leaders instituted Christmas during winter because that time of year was popular for the celebrations of many pagan festivals. The hope was that Christmas would also become a holiday that would gain much popularity. The church leaders achieved the goal of having Christmas celebrations, become popular during the winter solstice, but they were unable to control other pagan-like celebrations during Christmas. Believers would attend church on Christmas and then participate later in raucous and drunken celebrations.

The celebration of Christmas in Europe changed in the early 17th Century when Oliver Cromwell and the Puritans gained power in England in 1645. To remove decadent behavior from the society, Cromwell cancelled Christmas. The Puritans noted that the Bible doesn’t mention any birth date for Jesus. Christmas celebrations returned in England around 1649 when Charles II was restored to the throne.

Christmas was not a holiday in early America because the Pilgrims who came to America had even stricter beliefs than Cromwell and the Puritans. Christmas celebrations were even barred in Boston from 1659 to 1681. Anyone caught participating in any event or activity related to Christmas had to pay a fine.

After the American Revolution it became unpopular to take part in English customs and Christmas again lost popularity. Consequently, Legislators in Congress did business on Christmas Day in 1789. It wasn’t until June 26, 1870 that Christmas was declared a federal holiday.

Christmas in the United States gained popularity as a holiday period during the 19th Century. It also changed at that time to become more family-centered rather than being carnival-like.

Many activities related to celebrating Christmas as we know it now evolved from cultures in Europe, before Christianity started. They would hang evergreen branches over their doors and windows because evergreens were believed to ward off witches, ghosts, evil spirits and illness.

Among common items used in Christmas decorations are the holly and the mistletoe. Both are used primarily in wreaths and garlands. The Druids started the tradition of using the mistletoe as decorative items to celebrate the winter season. They believed the mistletoe would bring good luck and ward off evil spirits. They also believed that it had a healing quality and could be used for everything from healing wounds to increasing fertility.

Read the rest of this entry »

By John C. Maxwell

It happens all the time.

Successful leaders- people with great business acumen, great teams and great vision- are moving along, growing their companies when, all of a sudden, they fall flat on their faces.

Their businesses start hemorrhaging money. Their best people start jumping ship. Their families start falling apart.

And they sit at their desks with their heads in their hands wondering, “How did this happen?”

I’ll tell you how it happened. They were blown up by a problem they never saw coming.

I call these problems “leadership landmines” because unless you’re consciously looking for them, they’re nearly impossible to spot. They’re buried in the grind of daily life, quietly waiting to injure and perhaps even destroy the next unsuspecting leader who steps on them.

Before I go on, I need to tell you that what I’m writing is based on personal experience. At one time or another in my career, I’ve stepped on landmines like the ones I’m about to describe. In some cases, I even have the scars to prove it.

If you’re moving and active, you’re bound to have a painful encounter with a landmine every now and then. It’s just the nature of leadership. But there are certain landmines that will absolutely wipe you out if you’re not careful, and those are the ones that really deserve our attention.

A friend once told me, “If I could kick the person most responsible for most of my problems, I would not be able to sit down for a week.” From my own life and the lives of the leaders I’ve observed over the years, I have found that to be absolutely right. Most leaders I watch don’t need to worry about the competition beating them. Instead, they need to be concerned about doing something stupid in the race and disqualifying themselves.

Read the rest of this entry »

By John C. Maxwell

Sometimes you have a minute to make a difference, sometimes you have a few seconds to make a difference. If you are lucky, you have an hour or maybe a day or two to make a difference. Time crunches in on you when a disaster like the terrorist attack on September 11th strikes. At that time, leadership emerges. Whether it is your greatest hour or your worst is up to you.

In every age, there comes a time when a leader must come forward to meet the needs of the hour. Therefore, there is no potential leader who does not have the opportunity to make a positive difference in society. Tragically, there are times when a leader does not rise to the hour.

The following are seven leadership practices seen in times of crisis:

Stand up and be seen.

Justice must not only be done but must be seen to be done. The same goes for leadership. This is not the time to lock yourself away in strategy sessions. It is time to be visible.

Embrace brutal optimism.

In the end, the best leaders combine two countervailing messages. Jim Collins, a management thinker and the author of “Good to Great”, sometimes describes this as the “Churchill paradox.” On the one hand was the Prime Minister’s grim promise of “blood, toil, tears, and sweat” in the near term. On the other was his upbeat certainty that England would prevail “however long and hard the road may be.”

Read the rest of this entry »